Anthony Letizia

Anthony Letizia has been many things through the years, including an accountant, journalist, and playwright. From June 2014 to May 2019, he served on the board – as well as treasurer – of the ToonSeum, a nonprofit museum of the cartoon and comic arts in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While there, Letizia curated two exhibits, “To Boldly Go: The Graphic Art of Star Trek” (October 2016 to January 2017) and “Popology: An Exhibit of Pop Culture and Comics” (September 2017 to November 2017), as well as co-curated “Wonder Woman: Visions” (November 2017 to February 2018).

After a decades-long hiatus, Anthony Letizia completed his M.A. in History at Duquesne University in December 2024. He has used his history background to make a number of presentations in recent years on the ways that popular culture intersects with the real world. The list includes: “Superheroes Battle Pollution on the First Earth Day” poster presentation as part of the Comics Arts Conference at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2024; “DC Comics and August 1986” at the Popular Culture Association Conference in Chicago in March 2024; and “Green Arrow as Social Justice Warrior” as part of the Comics Arts Conference at WonderCon in Anaheim in March 2023. He also organized/moderated a panel at the Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle in August 2022 entitled “A Green Arrow History of Seattle” and made a brief “Marvel Comics History of the 1960s” presentation at the virtual Popular Culture Association conference in April 2022.

Although still an accountant by day, at night Anthony Letizia is a strong proponent and true believer in the power of Geek Culture. He can be reached at anthony@geekfrontiers.com.

 

Outdoor Trek (and Wars Outdoors)

The Seattle theater troupe Hello Earth Productions began performing episodes of Star Trek in various local parks in 2010 before taking on the space fantasy epic Star Wars a few years later.

Malachor Temple

The Pennsylvania-based chapter of the international Saber Guild fangroup performs live action lightsaber duels while donning authentic-looking costumes from the Star Wars Universe.

Can’t Stop the Serenity

Fans of the television show Firefly and big-screen Serenity continue to make their presence known through an annual fundraiser for Equality Now that is held in cities around the world.

Who Killed Rosie Larsen?

The 2011 AMC drama The Killing is set in Seattle and follows the investigation of a teenage girl’s murder, as well as the aftershocks the crime has on those connected to her life and death.

Fantastic Four: Chaos at a Comic Con!

In 1998, the Fantastic Four battled the Avengers at San Diego Comic-Con after Captain America and his superhero teammates were infected by nanites that caused them to go on a rampage.

The Fans Strike Back

The largest European collection of Star Wars memorabilia was transformed into a traveling exhibit in 2017 and has been featured in Madrid, Paris, Budapest, Las Vegas and New York.

Green Arrow: The Night Birds

The DC superhero faces off against a flying drone that analyzes a person’s facial expressions and posture in a form of racial profiling, and then eliminates those it deems detrimental to society.

Comic-Con Museum

San Diego Comic-Con opened the offshoot museum in November 2021 as a way to expand their traditional five-day pop culture convention into a celebration that can last throughout the year.

Harley Quinn Invades San Diego Comic-Con

The popular DC character attended her first San Diego Comic-Con in a 2014 one-shot comic book, coming face-to-face with actual creators, artists, and a slew of Harley Quinn cosplayers.

Dazzler: The Debt

In 1983, the mutant singing sensation finds herself in San Diego with real-world Marvel editor Ralph Macchio during a comics convention that is disrupted by a fellow mutant-slash-dinosaur.

Champions: Who Is The Red Locust?

A 2017 issue of Marvel’s Champions comic book featured the first appearance of the Red Locust, an indigenous female superhero who protects teen runaways in the city of San Diego.

Rain City Superhero Movement

During the early half of the 2010s, Seattle had a team of real-life superheroes patrolling the streets, confronting drug dealers, helping the homeless, and protecting their local communities.